Episode 12: Is The Matrix Cyberpunk?; or, An Introduction to Cyberpunk Red, Part 1

02/05/21 • 98 min

It's a very special episode of 19 Hits the Dragon!

For the very first time in the show's extensive and prestigious history, Mike and Rob are venturing all the way out of the high fantasy adventure gaming space and dive headlong into the world of Cyberpunk Red! It is a distant, bleak, dystopian future, where a small cabal of hyper-wealthy elites exerts pulls the strings of society at every level, while the rest are left to scrounge to survive. Boy, aren't we all happy that doesn't remind us of any current prevailing conditions, am I right?

Anyway, this episode is the first part of a three part examination of Cyberpunk Red, as Mike and Rob share their first impressions of the system, take a look at the major Roles and talk about how they work, and talk about what characterizes Cyberpunk as a genre, and how the game's setting and rules reflect those characteristics.

Also here is a list of some of the other Cyberpunk and otherwise punk related titles we mention in the episode:

Hard Wired by John Williams

Nueromancer and the rest of The Sprawl Trilogy by William Gibson

Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azzerod

Bubblegum Crisis

Ghost in the Shell

Akira

All this and more in Episode 12 of 19 Hits the Dragon! Check it out! Tell your friends! And remember to like, comment, and subscribe!

It's a very special episode of 19 Hits the Dragon!

Also here is a list of some of the other Cyberpunk and otherwise punk related titles we mention in the episode:

Hard Wired by John Williams

Nueromancer and the rest of The Sprawl Trilogy by William Gibson

Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michael Azzerod

Bubblegum Crisis

Ghost in the Shell

Akira

All this and more in Episode 12 of 19 Hits the Dragon! Check it out! Tell your friends! And remember to like, comment, and subscribe!

Previous Episode

Episode 11: AD&D 2nd Edition Part 2; or, It Makes Perfect Sense If You're Totally Deranged

(Content Warning: Alcohol mention in the episode)

19 Hits the Dragon is back to delve further into the mysteries of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 2 nd Edition! This episode is all about classes. You would think that classes would be pretty straightforward, right? Then, you start flipping through Chapter 3 and are immediately confronted with a maze of experience tables, ability score requirements, and essential details buried under dense mountains of text. And then, after that, you come across the rules for high-level Druid advancement, and all hell breaks loose.

Fortunately, Mike and Rob are here to decipher these riddles, so that you don't have to! What are these mysteriously specific Thief skills, and how do they work? What's all this Priest spheres business about? And can anyone dare to delve into the mysteries of THAC0?

All this and more in Episode 11 of 19 Hits the Dragon! Check it out! Tell your friends! And remember to like, comment, and subscribe!

Next Episode

Episode 13: The Future is Dark; or, An Introduction to Cyberpunk Red, Part 2

We are back in the dark future of Cyberpunk Red! Today we highlight the core mechanics of the game and how your edgerunner succeeds or fails in their attempts to topple the megacorps.

We spend a little time talking through various aspects of the numerous skills before slowing down to unpack the role abilities. These are abilities and features that are distinct to each role and make each option unique. Are you a Rockerboy with a cult-like following? Maybe a Media with stories that will shake the foundations of society? Perhaps you’re a road warrior Nomad with a suped up ride? The possibilities and customization options to make your edgerunner unique are nearly endless.

Of course it wouldn’t be a Cyberpunk game without deadly firefights and combat encounters that can leave you hanging on to life by a thread. Swing your bats and swap bullets with the Boostergangers and hope your armor holds together long enough for you to flatline them. We talk some about how to get healed up and glance over the critical injuries but we save most of that for next week.

We wrap things up for this episode by talking about how you improve your character and how it differs from a traditional leveling system. It’s a longer episode but a lot of great info here so bear with us! Also Mike apologizes in advance for talking so much.

All this and more in Episode 13 of 19 Hits the Dragon! Check it out! Tell your friends! And remember to like, comment, and subscribe!